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How to order a South Dakota death certificate

Who holds it: DOH Vital Records holds originals for all deaths after 1905; county Register of Deeds keeps copies for deaths in that county1

Last checked against official sources on .

On this page
  1. Older records and indexes
  2. Related records in South Dakota
  3. How South Dakota handles it
  4. Death certificates in South Dakota counties with a full guide
  5. Official warnings
  6. Official copies vs look-alike sites
  7. Sources

Fee

$15 per certified or informational copy2

Who may order

Same eligibility as other vital records (registrant's spouse, children, parents, next of kin, authorized/designated agents, personal or property right); informational copies to anyone3

Older records and indexes

Genealogy index
Counties may make death/marriage indexes available to research members of the South Dakota Genealogical Society; state searches cost $151
Birth certificates: who holds it
South Dakota Department of Health, Vital Records (221 W. Capitol Ave, Pierre); certified copies also issued at any county Register of Deeds from the central state database1
Birth certificates: fee
$15 per copy (search fee, non-refundable); VitalChek online/phone: $15 + $6.50 VitalChek fee + $5 expedite (regular mail) = $26.50, or $44.00 with UPS next day; $2.50 surcharge for cards in person4
Probate: who holds it
Circuit court (Clerk of Courts in each county) handles probate under the Uniform Probate Code5
Older records: vital records for genealogy
Genealogy vital-record requests by mail only to DOH; photostatic informational copies recommended1

How South Dakota handles it

  • Register of Deeds is also the local vital-records registrar: it issues marriage licenses and certified birth, death and marriage copies from the statewide database, and accepts vital-record orders1

Death certificates in South Dakota counties with a full guide

The local office, its official online search and its own fee, for each county with a full guide. Local fees can differ from the statewide figures above.

CountyOfficeSearch onlineFee
Minnehaha CountyMinnehaha County Register of Deeds6—$15.006
Pennington CountyPennington County Register of Deeds - Vital Records7—$15.007

For any other county, see the county list on the South Dakota guide.

Official warnings

  • Vital records: VitalChek is the only third-party vendor authorized by DOH; other sites ordering SD certificates are not authorized4

Official copies vs look-alike sites

A certified copy comes only from the office that holds the record; reports and "research copies" sold by commercial sites are not issued by any South Dakota office. How to tell an official record source from a paid look-alike.

Rules in other states: death certificates in every state. Everything else in South Dakota: South Dakota public records guide.

Sources

Every fact above links to the official page it comes from; all 7 sources were checked on November 4, 2026. Fees and rules change, so check the office's own page before you pay or travel.

  1. Genealogy ResourcesSouth Dakota Department of Health
  2. Vital Records FeesSouth Dakota Department of Health
  3. SDCL § 34-25-52 Copies of vital records--FeesSouth Dakota Legislature (SDCL)
  4. Order Vital RecordsSouth Dakota Department of Health
  5. SDCL § 29A-1-201 Uniform Probate Code definitionsSouth Dakota Legislature (SDCL)
  6. Vital RecordsMinnehaha County Register of Deeds
  7. Pennington County, SD